Sunday, January 27, 2013

SUNDAY FUNNIES: LET'S EAT!

Always hungry, never full.
Hello Everybody! Ms. Waxy Dragon here.
Technically today should have been Autumn the Puppy's turn, but she has something special planned for next weekend's big football game to post, and asked me to fill in for her today.
So that did leave me in a bind wondering what to post this weekend until I thought of the one subject everyone discusses sooner or later.
FOOD!

When the customer complained his coffee tasted like mud, to which the waiter replied: "Yes sir, it's fresh ground."

Did you hear about the accident at the grocery story? A big soda display collapsed, but thankfully no one was hurt because they were all soft drinks.

Why did everyone at the bar rush to the roof?
They were told that the drinks were on the house.

Spilt milk fresh from the cow is an udder waste!

1002!
I think the TV Station's new weatherman used to be a Hispanic cook. He said the weather forecast was "Chili today and hot tamale."

What did one strawberry say to the other strawberry about their current troubles?
"If you weren't so fresh, we wouldn't be in this jam!"

And with that, I've gotten myself out of the unexpected jam I found myself in needing a column sooner than I thought I would. In any event, have a great week everyone, and please join Autumn here next weekend for football themed jokes to celebrate the big game; because only licensed vendors apparently can call it the "Super Bowl" any more.-wd.

A BRIEF LOOK AT RECENT MILESTONES

This is The Free Choice E-zine's 1001 post on the Blogger web-hosting system!
This establishment was originally called "The Alternative", and started out life as a both a print and online news source by a group of college students as a class project.
Over time as they graduated with their respective degrees, the group decided to continue their endeavors as strictly an online operation, renaming it The Free Choice E-zine somewhere along the way before I first joined the staff as a contributor back in 2005.
While I do clearly remember that we had broken 1000 posts before, unfortunately our past server's parent company abruptly closed on us back in August 2008, deleting our entire archives in the process.
Quickly scrambling to find a new host site, we settled upon Blogger, with our first post dated September 5, 2008. While The Sunday Funnies and The Puzzle Corner continued on from there, we have since added The Week In Review feature on Saturdays to supplement our news coverage, and are always looking for new features and ways to improve this E-zine.

But despite all the hard work of our staff, we would be nowhere without you, our loyal readers. The Free Choice E-zine has had two straight months of over 2000 monthly page views as part of five straight months (six in our Blogger history, to date) of over 1000 monthly page views; which is just a small token of over 25,000 career page views thus far.
So what does the future hold?
There is no doubt of breaking 26,000 page views by Spring and 1100 posts by this Summer.
Beyond that?
Let's see what the future holds together dear readers. And if you would like to comment or contribute, just e-mail us at FreeChoiceEzine@gmail.com

Lee Houston, Junior
Now Editor-In-Chief of The Free Choice E-zine

Saturday, January 26, 2013

THE WEEK IN REVIEW: JANUARY 20-26, 2013

Amongst events that have happened around the world this past week...

*United States President Barack Obama has been officially sworn in to serve his second term of office.
*Milos Zeman has been elected President of the Czech Republic.
*ALL Boeing 787 aircraft are still grounded at this time as engineers inspect their lithium-ion batteries.
*Protesters on both sides of the gun control issue are marching on Washington, DC as Congress debates the issue.
*As the Curiosity rover continues to explore the Martian surface, NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter reports evidence of an underground wet environment in the red planet's early history.
*Voters in Austria have elected to keep that country's military service mandatory. Meanwhile, the United States' Pentagon has decided to allow military women in active combat situations when viable.
*The United Nations' Security Council has passed "Resolution 2087", condemning North Korea's December 2012 rocket test while expanding economic sanctions against that country. Despite this, North Korea has announced a new long range nuclear missile weapon's test, with the United States as the "target"; and has threatened South Korea with "physical retaliation" if they participate in enforcing the new sanctions.
*Civil unrest still continues in Syria, Burma, Northern Mali, and Afghanistan.

IN SPORTS:
*The San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens will square off against each other in Super Bowl 47 on February 2.
*The New Orleans Hornets of professional basketball will officially become the Pelicans after the 2012-2013 season ends.

THE FREE CHOICE E-ZINE CELEBRATES ITS 1000th POST ON BLOGGER WITH THIS INSTALLMENT OF "THE WEEK IN REVIEW", AND THANKS ITS READERSHIP FOR GIVING US MORE THAN 2000(!) PAGE VIEWS FOR THE SECOND STRAIGHT MONTH AS WELL.
This organization was established as "The Alternative" print and online news source as a college project on December 13, 2003. Unfortunately all our previous online records were lost when our previous service abruptly went out of business. And while your humble Editor-In-Chief came on the scene well after the initial college experiment concluded, he and the current staff have strived to make this the best E-zine we could and will continue to do our humble best towards that goal.
Lee Houston, Junior

For more news at any time, either scroll down to our IN OTHER NEWS feature at the bottom of your screen or visit any other reputable news source.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: JANUARY 26, 2013

Is ye olde puzzle master getting THAT predictable?
After posting last weekend's US Presidential Inauguration Quiz, several people e-mailed The Free Choice E-zine wanting to know how come we didn't play "The Letter Shuffle" with an appropriately themed word.
Two reasons.
1. I'm trying NOT to be that predictable.
2. Whenever I run a quiz (depending upon difficulty and length) that is enough enigmas for one weekend.
However, to satisfy my fan base...

THE LETTER SHUFFLE
How many new words can you make out of the letter in the word INAUGURATION?

But now I'm also introducing a BRAND NEW game!

EXTREMES! (which should be self-explanatory with the opening installment)
Can you name both the YOUNGEST and OLDEST performers to ever host NBC's Saturday Night Live (to date)?

We'll reveal all next weekend. But for now, let's peek inside THE ANSWERS BOX and discover the results of the aforementioned US Presidential Inauguration Quiz from the January 19th Puzzle Corner.

01. President Obama is the 44th President of the United States.
02. Counting Obama's, because of additional terms of previous Presidents, there have actually been 57 inauguration ceremonies. 
03. Because it has not always been our nation's capital, who was the first President to actually have his inauguration ceremony held in Washington, DC? THOMAS JEFFERSON.
04. Who was the first President to have their inauguration aired over the radio? CALVIN COOLIDGE
05. Who was the first President to have their inauguration televised? HARRY S. TRUMAN, upon his first full term.

Monday, January 21, 2013

A DOUBLE HEADER IN AMERICAN HISTORY

Two very important events happened today here in the United States of America.
The first was the annual celebration of the life of the late Doctor Martin Luther King, Junior.
The dreamer.

"I have a dream that one day my four little children will live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."
(mlk,jr)

Many feel that dream has come true, not just in the course of social events over the last couple of decades, but by the election in 2008 and the re-election in 2012 of Democrat Barack Obama, who was publicly sworn into office today to undertake his second and final term as President of the United States.

President Barack Obama
President Obama took his first oath of office on January 20, 2009; the day after that year's observance of the King holiday. Obama officially took the oath of office for his second term in a private ceremony yesterday, January 20; as prescribed by the current regulations governing this country, but the public ceremony and celebrations were delayed until today.

Like Doctor King, the current President has tried to do what's right for this country and its people, despite opposing opinions, in this case: from the Republican Party and their supporters; who have criticized and/or impeded the President's actions at every opportunity.

As the President said himself during his inauguration speech earlier today, paralleling the words of both Doctor King and former President Abraham Lincoln, there is no denying that the world is not perfect, that it takes people willing to do what's right to make it better. Where once people were misjudged by their race, now the negative criticisms are based upon their wealth and/or social standing.

The federal budget, gun control, and a score of other topics...
It is as certain as you are reading these words right now that things must change for the better; for no country can successfully travel upon the road the United States of America has found itself on before the current administration first took office, and that some still wish us to traverse.

"Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness." (mlk,jr)

"For now decisions are upon us, and we cannot afford delay. We cannot mistake absolutism for principle, or substitute spectacle for politics, or treat name-calling as reasoned debate. We must act, knowing that our work will be imperfect. We must act, knowing that today's victories will be only partial, and that it will be up to those who stand here in four years, and forty years, and four hundred years hence to advance the timeless spirit once conferred to us in a spare Philadelphia hall." --From President Obama's second inauguration speech, January 21, 2013.

Sunday, January 20, 2013

SUNDAY FUNNIES: SLEEPY HUMOR

Sleeping on the job
Hello everyone! Ms. Waxy Dragon here!
Let's take a look at the funny side of sleeping today.

Why should you take hay to bed with you?
To feed your nightmare.

Why did the man take a ruler to bed with him?
He wanted to see how long he slept.

A log woke up in the forest after a good rest and said, "Boy! I slept like a human last night!"

Did you hear about the mattress store that wouldn't let a customer in?
Apparently the guy showed up in his pajamas and said he wanted to test the mattresses before he bought one.

Did you hear about the guy who dreamed he ate a giant marshmallow?
He woke up in the morning and discovered his pillow was missing.

Infamous pickup line: "You must be tired because you've been running through my dreams all night."

So pleasant dreams everyone, and please be back here next weekend for more Sunday Funnies!-wd.

Saturday, January 19, 2013

THE WEEK IN REVIEW: JANUARY 13-19, 2013

United States President Barack Obama will be sworn in for his second and final term privately on Sunday, January 20, 2013; and publicly on January 21, which is also the national observance of Doctor Martin Luther King, Junior's birthday.

Amongst events happening around the world this past week...
*The National Rifle Association is rallying support and public opinion the best it can as President Obama called for new gun control legislation Wednesday. Meanwhile, gun stores are reporting huge rushes on weapons and ammunition with the pending changes.
*ALL Boeing 787 aircraft have been grounded worldwide because of safety concerns about their lithium-ion batteries.
*Reports from NASA's Cassini space explorer show that the craters on Titan seem to be disappearing. There is no current explanation for this.
*NASA's Curiosity rover has found proof of calcium deposits on Mars akin to the results of water circulating in cracks and rock fractures.
*Civil unrest continues in Syria, Libya, Northern Mali, and Afghanistan.
*The Free Choice E-zine thanks its readership for helping this establishment break 1000 blog-site views for the fifth straight month! And we are just 4 posts away from our career 1000th post with Blogger!

IN ENTERTAINMENT NEWS:
*Amongst the 2013 Golden Globe winners... Les Miserables (Best Musical or Comedy, Best Musical or Comedy Actor: Hugh Jackman), Argo (Best Dramatic Picture, Best Director: Ben Affleck); Homeland (Best TV Drama, Best TV Drama Actor: Damian Lewis, Best TV Drama Actress: Claire Danes), Girls (Best TV Musical or Comedy, Best TV Musical or Comedy Actress: Lena Dunham)

IN SPORTS:
*A shortened, 48 game schedule begins today, ending the 2012-13 lockout in professional hockey.
*LeBron James has earned his 20,000 career point in professional basketball.
*While Lance Armstrong confessed to taking performance enhancing drugs to Oprah Winfrey, the International Olympics Committee took away his Bronze Cycling medal from the 2000 Summer Olympics after he failed to appeal the removal of his seven Tour de France "victories".
*Professional baseball great Stan Musial has passed away at the age of 92.

For more news at any time, either scroll down to our IN OTHER NEWS feature at the bottom of your screen or visit any other reputable news source.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: JANUARY 19, 2013


HAIL TO THE CHIEF!
On Monday, January 21, 2013; United States President Barack Obama will be sworn in to begin his second and final term in office.
Therefore, it's INAUGURATION QUIZ TIME!

01. President Obama is the (fill-in-the-blank) President of the United States. {looking for a number}
02. Because of additional terms of previous Presidents, there have actually been (fill-in-the-blank) inauguration ceremonies. {looking for another number}
03. Because it has not always been our nation's capital, who was the first President to actually have his inauguration ceremony held in Washington, DC?
04. Who was the first President to have their inauguration aired over the radio?
05. Who was the first President to have their inauguration televised?

We'll reveal all next weekend. But for now, let's peek inside THE ANSWERS BOX, and discover the results from our January 12, 2013 Puzzle Corner.

TRIVIA TIME
What was the SECOND group to feature John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison?
Answer: THE BEATLES! The first was The Quarry Men. John Lennon started the group with a couple of his school chums. Paul McCartney joined later, and George Harrison became a member shortly before their evolution to The Beatles.

COMMON BONDS
The members of each group below have something in common. Do you know what it is?
01. {Chicago, The Bay City Rollers} = Saturdays

Chicago had a hit with Saturday in the Park, while the Bay City Rollers looked forward to S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y NIGHT!
02. {Lionel Richie/The Commodores, The Monkees} = Sundays

Lionel Richie and the Commodores sang Easy Like Sunday Morning; while The Monkees experienced a Pleasant Valley Sunday.

Sunday, January 13, 2013

SUNDAY FUNNIES: PROGRESS VERSUS CONGRESS

Political watchdog
Hello Everybody. Autumn the Puppy here with my first Sunday Funnies post of 2013!

While I don't get on my soap box too often, there is no denying that political humor has been in existence almost as long as there has been politicians.
And some of the most poignant, and funny, jokes have been made concerning the United States Congress.

Since their 113th session began, the Republican majority the House of Representatives have already made another failed attempt to repeal Obama Care, postponed taking action on giving more relief to victims of Hurricane Sandy and discussing women who have been victims of violence. They still have yet to even start talking about a job stimulus package, and don't even get me started about their record on gun control...
Then again, the opposite of Pro is Con, so the opposite of Progress is....?
But I'm far from the first person to ever comment on the situation. Let's look at some of the more famous quotes from history.

Author Mark Twain (Huckleberry Finn, Tom Sawyer, etc) had plenty to say on the subject.
*Suppose you were an idiot, and suppose you were a member of Congress; but I repeat myself.
*It could probably be shown through facts and figures that there is no distinctly native criminal class in this country, except Congress.

His contemporary Will Rogers wasn't silent on the issue either.
*The only difference between death and taxes is that death doesn't get worse every time Congress meets.
*With Congress, every time they make a joke it's a law, and every time they make a law it's a joke.

Other comedians have weighed in on the subject too, like:
Milton Berle said "You can lead a man to Congress, but you can't make him think.", and
Red Skelton once observed, "Congress is men playing games with money that don't belong to them."

And while Barack Obama, our current President of the United States, has extended the olive branch of bipartisanship in hopes of getting tasks accomplished that will benefit the country, other Presidents have commented on the subject.
The forty-first President, George H. W. Bush said "I've often thought that the aging process could be slowed down if it had to go through Congress."
His predecessor, President Ronald Reagan once said "I've wondered at time what the Ten Commandments would have looked like if Moses had to run them through Congress first."

But perhaps former President Abraham Lincoln said it best.
"We, the people, are the rightful masters of both Congress and the courts; not to overthrow the Constitution, but to overthrow the men who pervert it."

There you go folks. Humor that also makes you think.
I'm one smart puppy, ain't I?
In any event, have a great week, and please be back here next weekend for more Sunday Funnies!-AtP.

Saturday, January 12, 2013

THE WEEK IN REVIEW: JANUARY 6-12, 2013

Amongst events happening within the first full week of the new year...

*A flu epidemic is running across the continental United States, due in part to many people not getting an anti-flu shot last fall when the supply was more abundant.
*The Church of England has agreed to allow gay Bishops, provided they stay celebiate.
*The 113th session of the United States Congress has been sworn in, re-electing Republican John Boehner Speaker of the House.
*Believe it or not, amongst all the ideas and petitions the White House receives each year, someone wanted the United States government to build a fully functional Death Star! A representative of the Obama administration politely explained why that wasn't feasible.  http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/white-house-answers-death-star-petition-no-171718726--politics.html
*Tokyo, Istanbul, and Madrid have all submitted bids in hopes of becoming the host city for the 2020 Summer Olympics and Summer Paralympics.
*Civil unrest still continues in Syria and Afghanistan.
*This is The Free Choice E-zine's 993rd post on the way to our career 1000th article on Blogger. Unfortunately, all records from our previous site host were lost when the company went out of business.

IN ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
*A new Miss America will be crowned at the end of the competition to be held later tonight, with representatives of all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands competing.
*The 2013 Golden Globes Awards will be presented Sunday, January 13th.
*The Razzies (also known as the Golden Raspberries) nominations for Worst Picture, Worst Actor, Worst Actress, Worst Supporting Actor, Worst Supporting Actress, Worst Screen Couple, Worst Prequel/Rip-off/Remake or Sequel, Worst Director, Worst Screenplay, and Worst Screen Ensemble have been announced; with the concluding film of the Twlight Saga leading the way with 11 nominations. The awards will presented on February 23, the day before the 2013 Academy Awards are presented.
*On the opposite side of the aisle, the Oscar nominations for Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Director, Best Writing, Best Animated Feature, Best Foreign Film, and other categories have been announced; with Lincoln leading with 12 nominations and Life of Pi a close second with 11. The Academy Awards will be presented February 24th.

IN SPORTS
*For only the second time within its history (the last time was in 1996), no one received enough votes to be nominated to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Amongst the potential candidates were suspected steroids users Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, and Sammy Sousa.
*Players and owners have reached an agreement, allowing professional hockey games in the National Hockey League to resume a shortened season by January 19th; although the 2012-13 All Star Game is still cancelled.

For more news at any time, either scroll down to our IN OTHER NEWS feature at the bottom of your screen or visit any other reputable news source.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: JANUARY 12, 2013

The second weekend of the new year is upon us. The weather is mixed, and so are the puzzles.

TRIVIA TIME
What was the SECOND group to feature John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison?

COMMON BONDS
The members of each group below have something in common. Do you know what it is?
01. {Chicago, The Bay City Rollers}
02. {Lionel Richie/The Commodores, The Monkees}

We'll reveal all next weekend. But for now, let's peek inside THE ANSWERS BOX and discover the results from the FAMOUS FIRSTS quiz of January 5 Puzzle Corner.

Our one name performers are:
01. Alecia Beth Moore = Pink
02. Cherilyn Sarkisian Lapierre = Cher
03. Helen Folasade Adu = Sade
04. Orville Richard Burrell = Shaggy
05. Paul Hewson = Bono
06. Christopher Hamill = Limahl (an anagram of his last name)
07. Marshall Mathers the Third = Eminem
08. Artis Ivey = Coolio

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

PROPHECY'S GAMBIT NOW AVAILABLE!

Cover art by Terry Pavlet
Prophecy's Gambit by Nancy A. Hansen, the long awaited sequel to her first book Fortune's Pawn, is Pro Se Press' first release for 2013.

Left alone and trying to resume her life after events in Fortune's Pawn, Callie the barmaid makes a startling discovery: she is with child following her clandestine affair with her hero, a forbidden union between a Human and an Elf.

But as Callie tries to figure out what she will do next, other forces are also in play. Some seek to protect her, while others want to destroy the child she carries; who is destined to rally the world against the forces of darkness, provided it lives that long.

Set within the same world as her 2012 releases: Tales of the Vagabond Bards and The Huntress of Greenwood; Nancy A. Hansen's Prophecy's Gambit, like its predecessor Fortune's Pawn, is both a stand alone adventure and the next exciting installment in the opening trilogy of The Greenwood Chronicles.

With a cover by Terry Pavlet and formatting by Sean E. Ali; Prophecy's Gambit is now available at Amazon.com in both paper and e-book formats.

Sunday, January 6, 2013

THE SUNDAY FUNNIES: THE WHOLE TOOTH!

Welcome to the first Sunday Funnies of 2013!
Before we begin, a bit of unfinished business from 2012.
We solemnly promise our Free Choice E-zine readership that the next time we have a day off, we will make sure to leave Lee some better material than what he posted last weekend (December 29, 2012).
We just did not think it was that funny.
Sorry boss.
(signed) Autumn the Puppy and Ms. Waxy Dragon

NOW THEN...
Hello Everybody! Ms. Waxy Dragon here!
I swear to tell the tooth...
Recently, I had to go visit my dentist.
Don't worry, nothing was wrong. Just a regular check up and cleaning. Something everyone with teeth should do on a regular basis.
But seeing that big old tank of laughing gas in the dentist's office (it was an empty display piece. Dentist use better stuff nowadays) reminded me of some dental jokes.
Ready?

A sign posted in a dentist's office said: "Please be nice to our dentists. They have fillings too."

Why did the king go to the dentist? To get his teeth crowned.


What time was the patient's dental appointment? Tooth-hurty!

Please brush twice a day!
What did the judge ask the dentist before he began working?
"Do you swear to pull the tooth, the whole tooth and nothing but the tooth?"

Why did the tree go to the dentist?
To get a root canal.

A dentist and doctor were competing for the same woman's love.  One day, the dentist had to be out of town for several days. Just before he left, he gave his love seven apples. Do you know why he did that?
Because an apple a day keeps the doctor away.

The daughter of a dentist and son of a doctor were arguing. The doctor's son said, "A little bird told me about your father. The bird said 'cheap, cheap, cheap'."
The daughter of the dentist then replied, "A duck told me about your father. The duck said 'Quack, Quack, Quack!'"

A doctor walked into a dentist. The fight that ensued was more entertaining than the lawsuits afterwards.

Well folks, I think the Sunday Funnies are off to a rousing start for this year! Have a great week everyone and we'll see you next weekend.-wd.

Saturday, January 5, 2013

THE WEEK IN REVIEW: DECEMBER 29, 2012-JANUARY 5, 2013

While the past week includes the final days of 2012, welcome to 2013!

Amongst events that have happened around the world this past week:
*Argentina, Australia, Luxembourg, Rwanda, and South Korea have joined the United Nations' Security Council.
*The United Kingdom has started its term as President of the G8, with the next conference scheduled for this June.
*South Korea has noted a significant decrease in the number of North Korean refugees officially reaching refuge in the country. Meanwhile, North Korean leader Kim Jung-un expressed his desire for a unified Korea during a New Year's Day broadcast.
*Wegelin & Company, Switzerland's oldest bank, has announced it will close after being severely fined by the United States government for enabling tax evasion by US citizens.
*Author Peter David, (What Savage Beast, the ongoing X-Factor comic book series) has been hospitalized after suffering a stroke.
*Because of a weird rule in Iceland, Blaer (which means "light breeze" in English) Bjarkardottir can only be called Stulka ("girl" in English), since Blaer is not on Iceland's approved list of names! The family is appealing the government decision.
*Singer Patti Page (Confess, Tennessee Waltz) has passed away at age 85.
*Civil unrest continues in Syria and Afghanistan.

IN AMERICAN POLITICS
*While Congress came to a last minute deal New Year's Eve to avoid the country going over the "fiscal cliff", most Americans will still wind up paying higher taxes in 2013, mostly from the fact that a temporary reduction in Social Security payroll taxes expired without renewal. Nevertheless, President Barack Obama has officially signed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012.
*Meanwhile, the 113th Congress is officially in session with Republican John Boehner re-elected Speaker of the House. Their first formal act of office after being sworn in? Another failed attempt to repeal Obamacare! Leaving many to wonder when Congress will budget more funds towards Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts or even start work on a jobs stimulus package!
*Hillary Clinton was successfully treated for a blood clot in her head and released from the hospital this week. Mrs. Clinton previously announced she would be stepping down as Secretary of State this January regardless of who won the November 2012 election.

For more news at any time, either scroll down to our IN OTHER NEWS feature at the bottom of your screen or visit any other reputable news source.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: JANUARY 5, 2013

Welcome everybody to the very first Puzzle Corner of 2013!
So to celebrate, we're going to play a special edition of FAMOUS FIRSTS!
Below are listed the birth/given names of some celebrities who are known to the public by only their famous first names.
Do you know who they are?
01. Alecia Beth Moore
02. Cherilyn Sarkisian Lapierre
03. Helen Folasade Adu
04. Orville Richard Burrell
05. Paul Hewson
06. Christopher Hamill
07. Marshall Mathers the Third
08. Artis Ivey

We'll reveal all next weekend. But for now, let's finish up some old business and open THE ANSWERS BOX to reveal the results from the December 29, 2012 Puzzle Corner.

COMMON BONDS
01. {Alistair Sims, Patrick Stewart} = Both have portrayed Ebeneezer Scrooge in adaptations of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol.
02. {Jim Backus, Alan Young} = Both have voiced animated characters in regards to Scrooge. Backus voiced the title character in Mister Magoo's Christmas Carol, where the near-sighted actor portrayed Scrooge, while Young voiced Scrooge McDuck in Mickey (Mouse)'s Christmas Carol.
03. {Both groups} = the additional common bond we were looking for is the fact that all four gentlemen are actors.

THE LETTER SHUFFLE
How many new words can you form out of the letters in NEW YEAR?
A, an, any, are, aye
Ear, earn, ewe, eye
Near, nee
Ran, raw, ray, renew
War, ware, warn, way, wean, wear, weary, wren
Yarn, yaw, yea
New and Year didn't count since they were part of the original phrase, but other words besides the 26 listed above might be possible.

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

LOOKING AHEAD IN 2013

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY!

After looking back yesterday to remember those who are no longer with us in yesterday's post below this one, now we look ahead to see what the future might hold in the coming months of 2013.

*United States President Barack Obama will be sworn in to serve a second term later this month, and in time he will have a new Secretary of State, for Hillary Clinton said she would be stepping down this month regardless of who won the November election, and this was before news of the blood clot in her brain became public knowledge. Don't worry, the doctors expect her to make a full recovery.
*Meanwhile, Congress got their act together long enough before the New Year's Eve deadline to avoid having the country go over the dreaded fiscal cliff. There is still a long way to go before America is safely away from the edge and heading back down the mountain, but at least it's a step in the right direction.
*Argentina, Australia, Luxembourg, Rwanda, and South Korea all join the United Nations' Security Council this month, while Croatia is scheduled to join the European Union July 1.
*Australia is scheduled to join the United States in pulling its troops out of Afghanistan this year.
*And there is a LOT happening in outer space this year! China is scheduled to launch an unmanned moon probe. NASA plans to launch new probes that will eventually explore Mars and Venus, and India will launch  the Mangalyaan probe to explore Mars this November. Please note that with the travel distances involved, it will be at least 2014 before most probes reach their destinations.
*For those into speculative fiction, 2013 is the year that the Uncanny X-men are/were supposed to experience the dystopian, anti-mutant Days of Future Past, a 1980 Marvel Comics story line, and the plot for the mutants next movie.
*Meanwhile, the Free Choice E-zine will soon be making its 1000th post on Blogger, while breaking both 24,000 AND 25,000 page views this year! PLUS: How many times might our readership help us break 1000, let alone 2000 monthly page views this year? Unfortunately, all records from our previous website host were lost when the company went out of business, so sadly we do not have an accurate record of our overall career stats.

AND OF COURSE THERE ARE PLENTY OF ANNIVERSARIES THAT OCCUR THIS YEAR!
INCLUDING:
225 YEARS AGO in 1788...
*Georgia became the fourth member of the United States of America January 2, Connecticut became the fifth state January 9, Massachusetts the sixth state February 6, Maryland the seventh state April 28, South Carolina the eighth state May 23, New Hampshire became the ninth state on June 21 while Virginia became the tenth June 25th, New York became the eleventh state July 26. Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey first formed the union in December 1787, and the rest did not join until after the American Revolution.

210 YEARS AGO in 1803...
*Ohio became the seventeenth member of the United States on March 1 of that year.

195 YEARS AGO in 1818...
*Illinois becomes the 21st member of the United States on December 3.

165 YEARS AGO in 1848...
*Wisconsin became the 30th United States member on May 29.

155 YEARS AGO in 1858...
*Minnesota became the 32nd state May 11th.

150 YEARS AGO in 1863...
*The Emancipation Proclamation became law January 1, officially ending slavery in the United States.
*West Virginia gained its independence and became the 35th member of the United States June 20th.

125 YEARS AGO in 1888...
*George Eastman patented a roll film box camera under the Kodak name.

105 YEARS AGO in 1903...
*The Mutt and Jeff comic strip first appeared.

85 YEARS AGO in 1928...
*Minerva "Minnie" Mouse and her beau Mickey Mouse first appeared in the theatrical short Plane Crazy on May 15th. July 29th saw the couple star in the first talking cartoon: Steamboat Willie.

80 YEARS AGO in 1933...
*The Lone Ranger debuted on the radio January 30th.
*Blondie Boopadoop married Dagwood Bumstead in the February 17th installment of that long running comic strip.
*The very first movie featuring King Kong was released in theaters March 2.

75 YEARS AGO in 1938...
*Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs made its theatrical debut February 4.
*Donald's Nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie made their theatrical short debut April 15.
*Superman debuts in the first issue of Action Comics. The issue is dated June 1938, but could have been released up to three months before the cover date to have maximum shelf exposure on the newstands.

70 YEARS AGO in 1943...
*Donald Duck's only Oscar winning cartoon Der Furher's Face hit theaters January 1.
*Droopy debuted in the Tex Avery directed theatrical short Dumb Hounded March 20.
*The character affectionately known as Red first appeared in the Tex Avery directed Red Hot Riding Hood May 8.

65 YEARS AGO in 1948...
*Churchy La Femme first sang "Deck Us All With Boston Charlie" in the December 22 installment of the Pogo comic strip by Walt Kelly.

60 YEARS AGO in 1953...
*Speedy Gonzales made his theatrical short debut in Cat-tails For Two.
*Then President Harry S. Truman addresses the nation in the first coast-to-coast live television broadcast.

50 YEARS AGO in 1963...
*Don Martin celebrated the first National Gorilla Suit Day within the pages of Mad magazine, but the event didn't truly become a national phenomenon until 1976.
*The original Outer Limits television series debuted September 16th.
*My Favorite Martian debuted on September 29.
*United States President John F. Kennedy was assassinated on November 22. The next day saw the premiere of the long running BBC series Doctor Who.

45 YEARS AGO in 1968...
*2001: A Space Odyssey made its theatrical debut April 6.
*Two of our Editor-In-Chief's childhood favorites debuted: The Banana Splits on September 7, and The Archies on September 14.
*The original Hawaii 5-0 debuted on September 26.
*The Little Drummer Boy Christmas special first debuted on December 19.

40 YEARS AGO in 1973...
*The animated version of Star Trek debuted, continuing the original five year mission of Captain Kirk and crew on September 8, exactly seven years after the original TV series started.

35 YEARS AGO in 1978...
*Odie made his first appearance in the Garfield comic strip of August 8.
*Mork and Mindy, Robin Williams' only TV series (to date) debuted September 14.
*The original Battlestar Galactica debuted on September 17.
*First Superman movie starring Christopher Reeve debuted on December 15.

30 YEARS AGO in 1983...
*The much anticipated Star Wars, Episode 6: Return of the Jedi debuted in theaters May 25th.

25 YEARS AGO in 1988...
*The Fox Trot comic strip began on April 20.
*Mystery Science Theater 3000 first aired November 24.

20 YEARS AGO in 1993...
*Star Trek: Deep Space 9 debuted in syndication January 3.
*Babylon 5 made its syndicated debut February 22.
*Animaniacs debuted September 13.